The Drentsche Aa Trail is an unofficial 4-day trek through Drentsche Aa National Park. In total, you walk about 80 kilometers, averaging 20 kilometers per day. The idea is to walk it with a full pack, including a tent and everything that comes with it. But there are also plenty of bases along the way, such as hotels and B&Bs.
Where many routes naturally pass through villages, I try to avoid that as much as possible. The Drentsche Aa Trail seeks out quiet: as much nature as possible, as little built-up area as possible, and about 80% unpaved paths. The route passes places such as the Strubben, the Ballooerveld, and the Gasterse Duinen.
I grew up in Zuidlaren, right in the national park. Through my landscape photography, I already knew many of the paths, fields, woodland edges, and quiet stretches. I often create my own multi-day hikes, but this is the first one I am taking seriously and want to share with others.
The route now seems to be ready, and the first people are already test-walking it. The next step is adding more context: there is still so much to learn about this landscape. I want to work that into the map later, probably through short texts and audio. If you know a lot about specific places along the route, or if you would like to help, please let me know.
You can already walk the route if you want. Please send me an email beforehand at aljan@scholtens.me, and I will gladly think along with you.
I test-walked the route in sections with my friends Ron and Patrick. Below are a few moments from those walks, together with some of the places that make this route so beautiful to me.
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